Source: ALTA The Latin American and Caribbean Air Transport Association (ALTA) is pleased to welcome TAP Air Portugal, Portugal leading airline, as an Associate Member. Founded in 1945, TAP is currently considered the fourth largest airline in Brazil, with 1.5 million passengers carried to and from the country in 2022. TAP carries millions of passengers to over 80 destinations worldwide and in addition to the 77 weekly flights on 13 unique routes the company offers between Portugal and Brazil, in South America and Caribbean, TAP also operates to Caracas and Cancun. Its network of routes, offers easy and fast connections at its hub in Lisbon, the airline has established itself as an excellent choice for connecting to Europe. "We are [...]

Source: ACI-LAC The cargo terminal community at El Dorado International Airport is preparing for the first major flower export season for Valentine's Day, with Miami as the main destination for export flights. In that sense, Rafael Echevarne, General Director for ACI - Airports Council International in the regional office of Latin America and the Caribbean highlights the importance of the articulated work between the interested parties for the benefit of the air cargo movement, in this case the flowers that represent between 75% and 80% of the exports from El Dorado. "With the beginning of the high season of flower exports for the celebration of Valentine's Day, from ACI-LAC we urge the integral and collaborative work of all actors in [...]

Source: IATA The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced that it has completed the annual revision of its air transport industry manuals for cargo, ground handling, and operations, thus incorporating the updates made to many of the underlying industry standards over the past year. These revisions reflect the sector’s commitment to further improving safety, introducing more sustainable operations, as well as enhancing the passenger experience and cargo handling. Examples of these changes include: Revised Dangerous Goods Regulations With more than 1.25 million dangerous goods shipments being flown by air on an annual basis, it is essential that the rules and regulations allowing for the safe transport of such substances and articles are revised to reflect safety and operational developments. One [...]

Source: TSA The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) recognized a year of accomplishments and progress in 2022, setting a new record in firearm interceptions by Transportation Security Officers (TSOs) at checkpoints, making significant strides to improve transportation security and screening an average of more than two million passengers daily at airports across the country. TSA provided airport screening at or near pre-pandemic travel volumes despite multiple instances of challenging weather conditions; enhanced cybersecurity resilience of critical transportation infrastructure with performance-based security directives and continued to test and deploy new technologies that significantly improve security effectiveness, efficiency and the passenger experience throughout the transportation system. Additionally, TSA officers stopped more than 6,500 firearms at airport checkpoints. "I am incredibly proud of our dedicated TSA [...]

Source: ACI-NA Airports Council International – North America (ACI-NA), has announced new leaders to the ACI-NA Board of Directors, the U.S. Policy Council, the Canadian Policy Council, and the World Business Partners/Associates Board of Directors, effective January 1, 2023.  ACI-NA is the trade association representing commercial service airports in the United States and Canada. “For the last 75 years, ACI-NA has forged a solid reputation for success because of the volunteer leaders who contribute their time, talent, and energy to help lead us in times of change or challenge,” said Sam Samaddar, Airport Director for the Kelowna International Airport and Chair of the ACI-NA Board of Directors.  “I am confident these new leaders will carry on that tradition in this [...]

Source: ALTA In the context of the upcoming 12th ALTA Pan American Aviation Safety & Ops Summit that will take place from June 12 to 14, 2023 in Santiago de Chile, Patricia de Andraca Sarabia, in charge of the International Aeronautical Relations Section of the Directorate General of Civil Aeronautics of Chile, the Director of Operational Safety of ALTA, Virginio Corrieri, have held meetings in the Chilean capital. The 12th version of the ALTA Pan American Aviation Safety & Ops Summit will be the first event in ALTA's 42-year history to be organised in Chile and from that association, its CEO Jose Ricardo Botelho, points out that "we feel honored by the full support of the Chilean aeronautical authority in [...]

Source: ACI World Airports Council International (ACI) World calls on regulators to support the economic sustainability of airports as social and economic engines of communities worldwide and for the benefit of the travelling public. The call to action supports the recent ACI World Resolution Restoring Economic Equilibrium that urges governments to acknowledge the changed risk profile of airports in some jurisdictions due to the pandemic and to provide regulatory support to restore economic equilibrium for unrecovered costs, either as financial compensation or through future airport charges. It also follows the recent outcomes of the Economic Commission of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) that recognized the need for the ongoing review of ICAO's Policies on Charges for Airports and Air Navigation Services (Doc [...]

Source: ACI-LAC TAV Operation Services, a subsidiary of TAV Airports Holding and ADP Group, the leading global airport and travel hospitality service providers becomes a new ACI-LAC World Business Partner. TAV Operation Services operates over 80 lounges in 19 countries and provides a variety of premium passenger services. In addition to offering premium and ancillary services, TAV Operation Services also offers loyalty platforms, meet-and-greets, and commercial area management. With a global brand architecture, the company represents Primeclass, TAV Passport, Tavport.com, LoungeMe, Airporteasy.com, and HelloSky Air Rooms. Rafael Echevarne, Director General of Airports Council International for Latin America and the Caribbean (ACI-LAC) expressed his enthusiasm to welcome TAV Operation Services as a new world business partner. We at ACI-LAC are looking [...]

Source: ALTA In 2023, a potential drop in demand for air transport services is foreseen, marked by the global economic recession and other factors During November 2022, Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) remained the region with the best level of recovery in the world. Specifically, 29.2 million passengers were carried in the region, 97% of November 2019 passengers. Cumulatively, nearly 298 million passengers were carried from January to November, 9.9% below their 2019 levels. November's data reflect significant progress in the recovery path compared to October when 92% of 2019 levels were reached. LAC's figures exceed those of North America, which was at 92% of its 2019 levels, the Middle East at 88%, Europe at 81%, Africa at 80%, [...]

Source: US Department of Transportation The U.S. Department of Transportation today released its Air Travel Consumer Report (ATCR) on airline operational data compiled for the month of October 2022 for on-time performance, consumer complaints, mishandled baggage, and mishandled wheelchairs and scooters. There was a 12.0% decrease in air travel service complaints from September to October; however, complaints are more than 370% above pre-pandemic levels in October 2019. The ATCR is designed to assist consumers with information on the quality of services provided by airlines. DOT remains committed to ensuring airline passengers are treated fairly and is concerned about recent flight cancellations and flight disruptions. During the summer, the Department rolled out a new airline customer service dashboard to help travelers determine what [...]